Accessibility links
National Security National Security

National Security

Wednesday

World

Quran Burnings Complicate U.S. Role In Afghanistan

After U.S. military officers in Afghanistan accidentally burned Qurans while disposing of other Islamic texts, two American military officers were killed and protests broke out throughout the country. The violent responses have raised concerns about the U.S. strategy.

Quran Burnings Complicate U.S. Role In Afghanistan

Listen · 30:18
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/147654741/147654734" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Expert Panel To Give Controversial Bird Flu Research A Second Look

An health official wearing protective gear culls a bird at a poultry farm after a naturally occurring bird flu virus was detected near Agartala, India, in January. Sushanta Das/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Sushanta Das/AP

Shots - Health News

Expert Panel To Give Controversial Bird Flu Research A Second Look

The studies in question looked at how the bird flu virus could spread through the air. An expert panel that advises the government on biosafety in research had earlier said the findings should not be published, fearing that the data could fall into the wrong hands.

Expert Panel To Give Controversial Bird Flu Research A Second Look

Listen · 3:34
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/147641261/147662578" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Monday

Afghan Violence Raises Questions About U.S. Strategy

The latest violence in Afghan has raised doubts about the U.S. strategy. Here, Afghan demonstrators shout anti-U.S. slogans as they carry a wounded man during a protest in the Western city of Herat on Feb. 24. Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Aref Karimi/AFP/Getty Images

Afghan Violence Raises Questions About U.S. Strategy

The U.S. military plans to steadily wind down its role in Afghanistan over the next three years. But with the recent attacks against U.S. forces, will the military have to revise its approach?

U.S., Iran Eye Each Other Warily In Persian Gulf

An Iraqi jet fired missiles that hit the USS Stark in the Persian Gulf in 1987, killing 37 U.S. sailors. Iraq and Iran were at war at the time, and the U.S. wanted to keep open the regiion's vital oil shipping lanes. The current friction between the U.S. and Iran has again raised tension in the Gulf. U.S Navy/AP hide caption

toggle caption
U.S Navy/AP

U.S., Iran Eye Each Other Warily In Persian Gulf

The U.S. and Iran sparred over oil shipments in the Persian Gulf in the 1980s, a confrontation known as the tanker war. The current tensions have some parallels, but there are concerns any hostilities could quickly escalate.

Friday

Conflict In Libya

Libyan rebels walk past the wreckage of military vehicles belonging to Gadhafi forces bombed by the French airplanes in al-Wayfiyah west of Benghazi. Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Patrick Baz/AFP/Getty Images

Africa

Conflict In Libya

Protests challenging leader Moammar Gadhafi led to a bloody crackdown in February. Amid clashes between opposition forces and troops loyal to Gadhafi, thousands fled Libya. After rebels took much of the east, Gadhafi's forces began pushing back — and the UN Security Council got the international community involved.

N.J.: NYPD Crossed The Line In Monitoring Muslims

Mohamed El filali, of the Islamic Center of Passaic County, gathers with Muslim students and community leaders in Newark on Friday to address the monitoring of New Jersey Muslims by the NYPD. Spencer Platt/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

National

N.J.: NYPD Crossed The Line In Monitoring Muslims

There's new controversy over the New York Police Department's intelligence-gathering tactics after documents surfaced detailing information on Newark mosques and Muslim-owned businesses. Activists see it as an overly broad investigation of law-abiding Muslims, while local officials are upset by the department's reach outside New York City.

N.J.: NYPD Crossed The Line In Monitoring Muslims

Listen · 4:00
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/147352818/147376669" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Hezbollah Suspect May Face U.S. Military Commission

U.S. Brig. Gen. Kevin Bergner speaks in Baghdad in July 2007 near a poster of Ali Musa Daqduq. Daqduq was captured in Iraq in March 2007, and is accused of orchestrating the killings of five U.S. soldiers. The U.S. left Daqduq in Iraqi custody when U.S. troops formally withdrew in December. But the Obama administration is seeking to try him before a military commission. Wsthiq Khuzaie/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Wsthiq Khuzaie/AP

Hezbollah Suspect May Face U.S. Military Commission

To date, U.S. military tribunals have been reserved for al-Qaida and Taliban suspects. But now the Obama administration is seeking to try a Lebanese man accused of orchestrating the killings of five American soldiers in Iraq.

Wednesday

Dealing With Dictators, The U.S. Playbook Varies

The U.S. has taken very different approaches to authoritarian rulers in recent years. President Obama has called for the ouster of Syrian President Bashar Assad, shown here in Damascus on Jan. 11, but has resisted calls for the use of U.S. military force against the Syrian regime. STR/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
STR/AFP/Getty Images

Dealing With Dictators, The U.S. Playbook Varies

The U.S. has used military force to help oust three dictatorial regimes since 2001. But other autocrats have good relations with the U.S., and some even get the red-carpet treatment. What factors account for the different responses around the world?

Tuesday

Saturday

'On The Table': Options For Ending The Iran Standoff

Iran's state-run Press TV showed images of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad touring Tehran's research reactor on Wednesday. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
AFP/Getty Images

Middle East

'On The Table': Options For Ending The Iran Standoff

The U.S. is determined to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons, saying ominously that "all options are on the table." But just what are those options? Are any of them up to the task of stopping Iran from getting the bomb?

'On The Table': Options For Ending The Iran Standoff

Listen · 11:29
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/147100526/147099481" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
U.S. Not Afraid To Say It: China's The Cyber Bad Guy

Staff members use computers at a press center in Beijing. Security experts say hacking of U.S. computers from China is becoming an increasing problem. Greg Baker/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Greg Baker/AP

Asia

U.S. Not Afraid To Say It: China's The Cyber Bad Guy

American officials have long complained about countries that systematically hack into U.S. computer networks to steal valuable data, but until recently they did not name names. In the last few months, that has changed.

U.S. Not Afraid To Say It: China's The Cyber Bad Guy

Listen · 4:43
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/147077148/147090432" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Thursday

Wednesday

As Wars Wind Down, What Are U.S. Security Needs?

U.S. soldiers are expected to be in Afghanistan for a couple more years. But already there's a debate about future U.S. security needs worldwide. Here, soldiers examine the site of a suicide bombing in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Jan. 19. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
AFP/Getty Images

As Wars Wind Down, What Are U.S. Security Needs?

For the past decade, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with the terror threat from al-Qaida, have been the focus of U.S. security officials. Now the debate is shifting, and planners are trying to figure out what comes next.

Tuesday

As China's Military Grows, U.S. Assesses Risks

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta (right) and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin Dempsey listen to questions during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Capitol Hill Tuesday. Both men spoke about the U.S. military shifting its focus to Asia. Mark Wilson/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Mark Wilson/Getty Images

As China's Military Grows, U.S. Assesses Risks

The U.S. military is at a turning point. It has just pulled out of Iraq, it is starting to wind down its effort in Afghanistan, it's shifting its focus to Asia, and the Pentagon budget for next year will shrink after a decade of huge increases. The defense secretary and the head of the Joint Chiefs spoke about the changes to Congress.

As China's Military Grows, U.S. Assesses Risks

Listen · 3:54
Transcript
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/146883300/146892460" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript